Directional grate access floor panel

ABSTRACT

A grate access floor panel comprising a support frame and a plurality of vanes supported by the frame, each of the plurality of vanes having an upstream end and a downstream end with respect to a direction of airflow across the plurality of vanes and faces that extend between the upstream and downstream ends, wherein at least some of the vanes have openings that extend through the faces thereof and have angled tips.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation application of application Ser. No.14/221,974 filed on Mar. 21, 2014 and entitled “Directional Grate AccessFloor Panel,” which in turn is a continuation application of applicationSer. No. 12/878,657 filed on Sep. 9, 2010 and entitled “DirectionalGrate Access Floor Panel.”

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to grate panels for access flooring systems. Inparticular, this invention relates to access floor panels having gratesthat direct cooling air from the plenum between the sub-floor and theaccess panel array through the array.

2. Background of the Invention

A typical data center includes multiple IT racks. Those racks, and theassociated peripheral equipment and cables, generate a relatively highamount of heat. Because of that heat, providing adequate cooling to ITracks in the data center is of paramount importance. Moreover, it isdesirable that the IT racks be cooled as efficiently as possible, as theenergy costs to cool IT racks may approach a large percentage of theenergy costs to operate the data center.

Data centers typically have a raised floor system, often called anaccess floor system. An access floor system is usually comprised of acontinuous array of floor panels, arranged edge-to-edge, and supportedabove the sub-floor by support structure. The array of access floorpanels usually extends wall-to-wall in the data centers.

A plenum is formed between the sub-floor and the access floor panelarray. The cables and other equipment run through the plenum, and theplenum is also used as a conduit for cooling air. Often, one or more airconditioning units supply air to the plenum, and some of the accessfloor panels in the array have grates. The cooling air passes throughthe grates into the data center.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,747,872 discloses a typical cooling system for a datacenter. In the system of U.S. Pat. No. 6,747,872, cool air from an airconditioner passes through the plenum between the sub-floor and theaccess panel array to grates in the array. The cool air then passesthrough those grates to spaces adjacent to the IT racks. However, theperforated panels or grates disclosed in systems such as that in U.S.Pat. No. 6,747,872 merely provide the cool air in a vertical plumebetween the IT racks.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above, it is desirable to provide a directional gratepanel for access floor systems that directs cooling air from the plenumbetween the sub-floor and the access floor panel array directly andevenly to faces of IT racks in a data center, resulting in moreconsistent temperature throughout the height of the IT racks and moreeconomic cooling of the racks.

A directional grate according to one embodiment may comprise a pluralityof spaced vanes provided within a support frame, each of the pluralityof vanes having an upstream portion and a downstream portion withrespect to a direction of airflow across the plurality of vanes; and aplurality of openings provided in at least some of the plurality ofvanes. The downstream portion of at least some of the vanes of theplurality of vanes may be angled with respect to their upstreamportions.

In another embodiment, the plurality of openings may be circular inshape. Alternatively, the plurality of openings may be any othergeometric or non-geometric shape.

In a further embodiment, some of the vanes of the plurality of vanes mayhave at least a portion that is angled at a same angle of inclinationwith respect to a vertical axis. The angle of inclination may be between20° and 35°. In yet another embodiment, the plurality of vanes mayinclude two or more groups of vanes that have at least portions that areangled at first and second angles of inclination, respectively.

In yet another embodiment, all of the plurality of vanes may haveopenings that extend through the faces thereof. In one aspect, each ofthe vanes of the plurality of vanes may have a same pattern of openings.The support frame may have at least one peripheral member that hasopenings therethrough that align with the openings in at least some ofthe vanes. Additionally, the openings may be formed as a plurality ofpartial cutouts along one edge of the plurality of vanes. Further, theopenings may be equally spaced in each vane of the plurality of vanes.The openings also may be of equal size in each vane of the plurality ofvanes, and a same pattern of openings may be provided in some of thevanes of the plurality of vanes.

In another embodiment, the grate access floor panel may comprise asupport frame and a plurality of spaced vanes having front and rearfaces, wherein at least some of the plurality of spaced vanes may haveopenings through the faces thereof that permit airflow through theplurality of spaced vanes as well as between adjacent vanes of theplurality of spaced vanes. The airflow through the plurality of spacedvanes results in more even distribution of air through the grate accessfloor panel.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a directional grate panel accordingto one embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the embodiment of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the embodiment of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the embodiment of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the embodiment of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a bottom perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along lines 7-7 in FIG.3.

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of a vane taken along lines 8-8in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a schematic view illustrating the use of the directional grateof FIGS. 1-8 in a data center.

FIG. 10 is a partial cross sectional view of the vane of anotherembodiment.

FIG. 11 is a partial cross-sectional view of the vane of FIG. 10 takenalong lines 11-11 in FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is a directional grate panel according to a further embodimentof this invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of the directional grate panel 50. Thedirectional grate panel 50 can be made of any material that is capableof providing the structural rigidity required for a given application.Preferably the directional grate panel 50 is made of a metal.

The directional grate panel 50 includes a frame 130. In this embodiment,frame 130 includes a square outer frame consisting of members 130 a, 130b, 130 c and 130 d, and a plurality of cross members 140, 150 and 160that are provided for structural support. The necessity and number ofcross members 140, 150 and 160 varies depending on the application.

The directional grate panel 50 includes a plurality of vanes 80, which,in this embodiment, are substantially parallel to frame members 130 a,130 c and 140. The vanes 80 may extend between one of frame members 130b and 130 d and support members 150, as shown in the figures, or vanes80 may extend all the way between frame members 130 b and 130 d. Vanes80 may form parallel rows. The number of vanes 80 may vary as desired,depending on the application.

Vanes 80 have a downstream end 170 and an upstream end 180 (see FIG. 8).“Downstream” and “upstream” are defined relative to the direction ofairflow through the directional grate panel 50. Vanes 80 have opposingfaces that extend between the downstream end 170 and the upstream end180.

Vanes 80 have holes (or openings) 85. See FIG. 7. While holes 85 areshown as a single row of spaced circular openings in FIG. 7, the holes85 can be of any shape and can be arranged in any pattern or randomly.The holes 85 do not have to have the same pattern or size in all thevanes 80. In fact, the holes in adjacent vanes 80 can be of differentsizes and patterns. In addition, some vanes 80 may have a differentnumber of holes 85 than other vanes 80. For example, one vane 80 mayhave only four holes 85, whereas another vane 80 may have five holes.

Also, not all of the vanes 80 must have holes 85. Rather, only selectedvanes 80, or sets of vanes 80, may have holes 85.

Further, the holes do not have to be “in” the vanes. Rather, the holesor openings can be partially formed by the vanes, as illustrated, forexample, in FIG. 10, which illustrates partial cross sectional views ofthe vanes of another embodiment of this invention. In the embodimentillustrated in FIG. 10, the openings 85 a are in the form of partialcutouts along one edge of the vane 80. In particular, FIG. 10illustrates an embodiment in which the openings are in the form ofsemi-circular cutouts formed in a vane. While the openings 85 a in FIG.10 are semi-circular in shape, the openings 85 a can be of any shape andspaced as desired along the vane 80. The shape of the openings 85 a canvary in a given vane 80, and the openings 85 a can be spaced equally, inany pattern or randomly in a given vane 80. FIG. 11 is a cross sectionalview of the vane illustrated in FIG. 10.

The holes 85 or openings 85 a in the vanes 80 have many functions. Forinstance, they reduce the weight of directional grate panel 50. Theyalso cause a more turbulent airflow as the air passes along thedirectional grate panel 50 to be directed through it, which reduces airvelocity, helps distribute air across the vanes evenly, and equalizespressure.

In the embodiment illustrated by FIGS. 1-8, frame members 130 a and 130c (see the side view of FIG. 3) are provided with through holes 90,which substantially line up with holes 85 in the end vanes 80.

When the directional grate panel 50 is installed in an access floorpanel array, the holes 85 and the through holes 90 are substantiallyaligned with a direction of the airflow 70.

In the embodiments illustrated in the Figures, the vanes 80 have anangled tip. In particular, an upper portion defining a vane tip 100 isangled with respect to the rest of the vane 80. The vane tip 100 is on adownstream end 170 of the vane 80 with respect to a direction of airflowthrough the directional grate panel 50. In other embodiments, the vanescan be flat, but angled with regard to the airflow direction, as shownin FIG. 12. The vanes can have any other shape, such as curved, thatdirects air as desired.

The angle of inclination α of the vane tip 100 of the vane 80 may rangebetween 20° and 35° with respect to the vertical axis. See FIGS. 8 and11. It has been found that tip angles in the range of 20° to 35° providebenefits over other angles because a tip angle range of 20° to 35°directs the optimal airflow to the IT racks, evenly distributing the airto the racks.

Some of the vane tips 100 of vanes 80 can have different angles ofinclination α than other vane tips 100. For example, some of the vanesmay have vane tips 100 having angles of inclination a of 20°, whileother vanes may have vane tips 100 having an angle of inclination α of35°. Vanes 80 having those differing vane tips may be arranged in sets,i.e., one set of the vanes 80 may have tips having an angle ofinclination α of 20°, while another set of the vanes 80 may have tipshaving an angle of inclination α of 35°. Alternatively, as a furtherexample, the sets of vanes may be arranged in an alternating fashionsuch that there is a vane having a vane tip at 20°, followed by a vanehaving a vane tip at 35°, followed by a vane having a vane tip at 20° orthe vane tips can alternate randomly, etc., or in any other pattern. Anexample of another pattern is that the vanes may be arranged with a vanehaving a tip at 20°, followed by two vanes having a tip ant 35°,followed by a vane having a tip at 20°, followed by a vane having a tipat 35°, etc. Further, all of the vanes 80 may have angled tip portions,or alternatively only some of the vanes 80 may have angled tips with theremaining vanes being vertically oriented or inclined.

As stated, FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a data center, data center 10,which includes at least one directional grate panel 50. Data center 10has one or more air conditioning units 30 that provide cool air via oneor more fans 40 to the plenum 110 between the sub-floor 115 and theaccess floor panel array 125. An airflow 70 is created by the fan 40through plenum 110 to the directional grate panel 50. The directionalgrate panel 50 is provided in the access floor array 125 adjacent to anIT rack 20. The directional grate panel 50 directs air toward a face 120of the IT rack 20. Warm air exhausted from the IT rack is then exhaustedback to the air conditioning unit 30.

The grate panels of this invention evenly distribute the air flowthrough them. Further, the grate panels of this invention direct ahigher percentage of the cooling air toward the adjacent IT racks 20.This results in less “wasted” air, i.e., air that is circulated throughthe data center without interacting with the IT racks 20. Because ahigher percentage of the cooling air is directed to the IT rack 20, lesstotal CFM of the cooling air has to be delivered to each directionalgrate panel 50.

What has been described and illustrated herein are preferred embodimentsof the invention along with some variations. The terms, descriptions andfigures used herein are set forth by way of illustration only and arenot meant as limitations. Those skilled in the art will recognize thatmany variations are possible within the spirit and scope of theinvention, which is intended to be defined by the following claims—andtheir equivalents—in which all terms are meant in their broadestreasonable sense unless otherwise indicated.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for facilitating air cooling of anIT rack of a data center, the apparatus residing within a raised floorof the data center wherein cooling air is conveyed from an under floorcooling air plenum, the apparatus comprising: at least one access floorpanel for disposition external to the IT rack, the at least one accessfloor panel includes a frame supporting a plurality of spaced apartvanes for directing an air flow towards the IT rack, and the vanespositioned and set at a fixed angle which is between about 20 to 35degrees from a plane which is perpendicular to the raised floor of thedata center and a support housed within the frame and connected to theframe and the support further supporting the plurality of spaced apartfixed vanes.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the vanes have a firstend and a second end, and the first end having a plane parallel to theraised floor of the data center whereby rolling loads may pass over theat least one access floor panel.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1, whereinthe at least one access floor panel is disposed external to a pluralityof IT racks and provides cooling air to the plurality of IT racks. 4.The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one access floor paneldirects a high percentage of the cooling air from the under floorcooling air plenum to the IT rack.
 5. A data center comprising: a subfloor; a raised floor constructed above the sub floor so as to define aplenum between the sub floor and the raised floor; the raised floorcomprising a plurality of access floor panels, at least one access floorpanel comprising a panel for disposition external to an IT rack; the atleast one access floor panel including a frame supporting a plurality ofspaced apart vanes for directing an air flow towards the IT rack and thevanes positioned at a set angle which is fixed between about 20 to 35degrees from a plane which is perpendicular to the raised floor of thedata center and a support housed within the frame and connected to theframe and the support further supporting the plurality of spaced apartfixed vanes.
 6. The data center according to claim 5, wherein the vaneshave a first end and a second end, and the first end having a planeparallel to the raised floor of the data center whereby rolling loadsmay pass over the at least one access floor panel.
 7. The data centeraccording to claim 5, wherein the at least one access floor panel isdisposed external to a plurality of IT racks and provides cooling air tothe plurality of IT racks.
 8. A method of facilitating air cooling of anIT rack of a data center, the method comprising the steps of: supplyinga cooling air to the IT rack, wherein the supplied air flows from anunder floor cooling air plenum forced between a sub floor and a raisedfloor; and directing the supplied cooling air to the IT rack at a setangle which is fixed between about 20 to 35 degrees from a plane whichis perpendicular to the raised floor of the data center.
 9. The methodof claim 8, wherein the supplied cooling air is directed to a pluralityof IT racks.
 10. The method of claim 8, wherein a high percentage of thedirected cooling air is utilized by the IT rack.